Taxes Question

[zachharper16]

Long story short, me and my partner (not married) filed taxes on here and TurboTax put in both my kids for my partner and I’s EIC credit. Now our taxes are messed up and I have to refile to get our maximum refund. I have to amend my return on the 15th of February when it opens for that. Would it be fastest for me to do that then have her refile by efile? Does she have to file by mail now since IRS doesn’t updated amendments for efiling? Need a little guidance please. 

[xmasbaby0 · Accepted solution]

When you all live together as a family but are not legally married, the child can only be claimed on ONE of your tax returns.   You cannot "split" the child-related credits.   Usually it is better for the one who earns more to claim the child and file as head of household and get the other child-related credits.   The other parent should file Single and enter nothing about the child on their return.

If a return using the child's SSN has already been accepted by the IRS, the other return will be rejected when that parent tries to e-file.  If the other parent is the one who should claim the child, then their return has to be filed by mail.   Even if you amend, that other return has to be mailed.

[cgmcpaadvisors]

If you and your partner aren’t married, only one of you can claim the kids for EIC and other child-related tax credits — not both. Usually, the higher earner should claim them and file as Head of Household; the other files as Single without listing the kids.

If the IRS already accepted a return with the child’s SSN, the other return will be rejected if e-filed. If the wrong person claimed the kids, they’ll need to amend their return. The right person will then need to file by mail, since the IRS doesn’t update amended info fast enough for e-filing.

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Disclaimer: General info only. For personalized help, speak to a tax pro.

[LindaS5247]

Only one person can claim the tax benefits for a dependent child.

If both parents e-file their returns, the second claim for the child will reject and the parent will be notified that the dependent with this Social Security number (SSN) is already claimed by someone else. Whether intentional or accidental, when parents claim the same child as a dependent in the same year, the IRS will determine which parent should properly claim the child and disallow the claim for the other parent.

In general, you can claim a child as a dependent if he or she is your qualifying child. The custodial parent is the parent with whom the child lived for the longer period of time during the year..

You are the custodial parent if your children lived with you the greater number of nights during the year.

The custodial parent usually claims the "qualifying child" on their tax return. 

If  you have them most of the time and provide more than half of their support you would be entitled to claim them as your dependents.

Both parents would have to come to an agreement or possibly have a court order as to who will have custody and who can claim them for tax purposes to protect that right. 

If parents can't agree on who gets to claim a child as a dependent, the IRS will decide. The IRS will usually allow the claim for the parent that the child lived with the most during the year.

You can use this tool to determine "Who may I claim as a dependent?"

Click here for "Claiming a child as a dependent when parents are divorced, separated or live apart"

Click here for "About Publication 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals"